REVIEW: Senses Fail – In Your Absence (EP)

There have been so many times when I have mentioned Senses Fail to friends or new acquaintances when discussing music that I have received pretty much, word for word, that famous quote from Obi-Wan in Star Wars: “Now, that’s a name I’ve not heard in a long time.”

Senses Fail are coming back at us with a new EP, but this time they’re doing something a little different. As hardcore fans of the band will know, they have progressed a lot over the years. Personally I remember listening to songs such as Calling All Cars and Bite To Break The Skin in my early teens whilst loitering around city centres on my MP3 player back when you’d consider “emo” a popular genre of music. This release from them isn’t quite like that or the post-hardcore styling we’ve seen them rocking as of recent, it is an acoustic piece.

In Your Absence is a beautifully composed EP and in every song, those three words are definitely at the forefront lyrically. In this instance you can’t really make a comparison to any of the bands previous releases. We open up with Jets To Perú, this song being the more upbeat song of the EP giving off a romantic kind of vibe (gross… Just kidding, it’s pretty sweet.) Listen for yourselves, it’s definitely something different from Senses Fail and it was nice to listen to this in the form it was meant rather than an acoustic cover of a previous song which we’ve seen these guys do before.

We swiftly change the tone here moving on the next song, In Your Absence. This sets you up nicely for the rest of the EP and the more pensive sound it brings. In Your Absence is paired with what sounds like a sombre kind of string orchestral piece in the background throughout which really brings the emotions to the surface of the song and what it portrays.

Death Bed gives a little more of a simplistic approach to the EP. You really have to give it to Buddy with how he’s progressed vocally through the years and when you compare his gentle singing in this song to previous work with the more harsher vocals. Backed with a beautiful piano melody that really helps capture the song and it’s meaning. Death Bed really reminds us what it’s like and what goes through our heads during times of loss in various forms, there is a lot to interpret from this and I think the emotion shown in the lyrics is beautiful with some incredible mental imagery.

We follow on from Death Bed with Family Tradition which although acoustic, has a nice little piece of electric accompanying it. From a personal perspective i’m reminded of a time when I tried to hard to please everyone and be someone I wasn’t for others but that is the beauty of songs and especially something that Senses Fail have managed to do well in this EP, which is allow these songs to be broken down in their fans own way, especially this song as a lot of different things went through my head whilst listening.

We finish off the EP with Lost and Found which I think overall is a beautiful metaphor of being lost at sea and how at times in life we lose ourselves. I’m reminded of a saying: “Only when we’re lost can we truly find ourselves again.” That is what this song depicts as we go through that battle in our head. The song is beautifully pieced together, and i really appreciate the tambourine they’ve got going on in it, i don’t know why… But i like it.

Overall the EP is a fantastic collective of music and writing and emotion and I don’t think they could of presented these songs any better than by doing an acoustic set. It definitely left me wishing there were more songs to enjoy. The EP is due to release on the 3rd of March however Jets To Perú has a music video released on Pure Noise’s YouTube and Lost and Found is available on Spotify, so check them out.

REVIEW: Senses Fail – In Your Absence (EP)

Lee Thompson

February 19, 2017

8.5/10

Senses Fail change the tune with their new EP.

8.5Overall Score

Post-hardcore band soothe us with delightful clean vocals and dulcet acoustic tones.